AM: (7 miles, 57:35). FOILED!! I ran 2 miles to the U of A track for a short tempo run (3 miles) and it was all locked up. I am not sure if it was because school doesn't start until tomorrow or if it is not open to the public (Dean had done one workout here). It was not nearly as nice as Pima ... but since it was such a short workout I thought it would be cool to check out (and it is perfect distance from my office). Anyway -- I was going to just run 22 mins hard, but I knew there was another track nearer to my office, so I thought I would give it a try - it was locked as well. I like doing tempos on the track because I can make sure I don't go out too fast, and I know exactly how far I am running. So ... the plan is to just run 3 miles hard tonight instead (only three more "workouts" -- really more like pace work -- before the race).
PM:(4+ miles, 37:42) - I KNEW it!! one lap on the grass on the "quad" here is longer than a mile (Dean always overestimates)! I ran over there (7:00) and then ran 3 laps (8:15, 8:05, 8:05) + back to my office (6:19 - hard to slow back down once you get warmed up!). I am pretty sure I was close to 7:35-7:45 pace ... the first one felt way hard, but then I just relaxed into it and felt pretty good. Had to dodge some students, some cars and lots of up and down on the pavement over the roads, so I am pretty sure it wasn't any faster than 7:35, but it was faster than my usual jog there thats for sure. I am glad I did it, even though I was dreading it! | 